UP Rajya Sabha Contest Nears Conclusion as Candidate Count Matches Seats

Lucknow, 6 Oct – The ten‑seat Rajya Sabha election from Uttar Pradesh is poised to conclude without a single vote, as the tally of nominees now mirrors the number of vacancies.

All eight Bharatiya Janata Party candidates filed their nomination papers on Tuesday, joining the two Samajwadi Party nominees previously submitted. The SP, after initially considering a third contender, opted to withdraw, leaving the total candidate count at ten.

The BJP team arrived at the party’s state headquarters amid fanfare, with drums and chants echoing through the compound. Senior leaders – Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, BJP state president Pankaj Chaudhary, Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya and minister Brajesh Pathak – oversaw the formalities.

Dharmpal Singh led the list of submissions, while Shruti Gangwar, daughter of Jharkhand Governor Santosh Gangwar, completed the final filing.

Former Barabanki MP Priyanka Singh Rawat and Gopikrishna Pandey received Yogi Adityanath’s blessings before signing.

The BJP’s roster, announced on Monday, includes Dharmpal Singh, Radhakant Ojha, Prakash Pal, Vidyasagar Sonkar, Gopikrishna Pandey, Priyanka Singh Rawat, Rampratap Singh Chauhan and Shruti Gangwar. Speaking after his nomination, Rampratap Singh Chauhan thanked the party’s national and state leadership and vowed to serve the Upper House diligently.

Prakash Pal highlighted that the party’s elevation of grassroots workers and OBC leaders to the Rajya Sabha sends a powerful signal to disadvantaged communities.

Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya mocked SP chief Akhilesh Yadav’s ambition to capture all 403 assembly seats, quipping that the SP’s “bicycle” would start wobbling after reaching fifty seats and eventually burst.

Brajesh Pathak accused the SP of repeatedly targeting constitutional bodies after defeats and forecast a sweeping BJP victory in the 2027 state elections.

Akhilesh Yadav posted on X that the party’s focus had shifted from “three” seats to “four‑hundred‑and‑three”.

If the Election Commission finds all nomination papers valid and no withdrawals are filed, the poll scheduled for 16 October could be declared unnecessary, resulting in an unopposed election for all ten seats.

The nomination deadline closed on 6 October, and the verification process is now underway.